Support of Friends
by bambibean000
Summary: Yuuri Katsuki has been suffering with anxiety for a long time and his family found it time for him to stay in a hospital for support. While in the hospital, he joined a support group where he met a number of interesting people. Will he find the support he needs? (Teen!Hospital!AU)
1. The Hospital and The Group

**A/N: This is my first Yuri on Ice fanfiction. It covers heavy topics such as panic attacks, cutting and other illnesses. If this bothers you, or if you are easily influenced, please, do not read this. Other than that, all the characters are in their mid to older teens for plot convenience. Please leave a review to let me know how it is and if you want me to keep going.**

 **\- Lulu**

* * *

Yuuri's world was spinning. His surroundings smelled so sterile it made him sick. The bright walls made his head throb as he made his way through the hospital halls.

" _I know this is scary, but it's for the best. We aren't leaving you. We will come to visit as much as we can." His mother had assured him when she had dropped him off at the best mental health hospital in Japan. He had argued, but it only made him feel closer to panic._

 _"You promise you'll visit?" He asked, feeling tears threaten to emerge._

 _"Of course, Yuuri," His mother sealed the promise with a kiss on the forehead. "Good luck, my boy."_

He was pulled from the memory by one of the doctors he was walking with, who had introduced himself as Celestino, said, "Here we are."

They were at a grey door with a name plate that read, _Katsuki_ , as prepared for his arrival. Pushing it open, Yuuri's breathing sped a little bit at the blank, light grey walls, light blue sheets and empty wardrobe. There was a shelf on the far wall with a series of calming objects, stress balls, Slinkies and a stuffed dog. The dog looked a lot like his family pet, Victor, or Vicchan. He missed him a lot and felt a hot tear run down his cheek.

Doctor Celestino wiped it away with a soft, large hand and smiled at the boy. It was a reassuring smile that made Yuuri return, a more pained smile. He sat on the bed and held the stuffed dog in his arms lightly. "Her name is Maccachin." The doctor said, "Named by the previous owner."

"Maccachin..." Yuuri whispered, pressing his face into it. She smelled sterile, just like everything else in the building, but there was a hint of cinnamon. He breathed it in. It was nice.

The next few hours passed with nothing to note. He ate, he read a book he brought from home and took a nap. This wasn't to say the Yuuri felt at home. Far from it. The bed still felt too new and clean. The walls were too bright and he kept the light off, with only the light of the sun from the window to light the room, unless he was reading. He had met a few of the other doctors, but it seemed like Celestino was his closest doctor, the one to rush to his call and was always there when he woke.

Like most days, he had a few a panic attacks the week, but less then usual, which must have been the atmosphere. He definitely felt safe, if not comfortable. The first panic attack was difficult without his mother there.

He had woken up, after the first night there, and had no idea where he was. The walls were too bright, there's wasn't enough sound. He shot up and felt his chest tighten, his heart pound and his breathing become unsteady. The pounding of his heartbeat filled his ears.

 _No, no, no..._ he thought. He was terrified. Where was he? What was happening? He wanted to run but he body felt numb.

Every nerve buzzed and he shouted, "HELP!" At the top of his lungs. It echoed through the room and into the hall. The door opened, _oh god, who is here?_ Yuuri's head spun and he fell back onto the bed. The person who had entered left with a glace at Yuuri and familiar, heavy steps entered. He was curled up, shaking on his bed. The sheets felt too rough to be right. He wasn't home. He needed to get home!

"Yuuri..." Celestino's voice was low, soft. It made Yuuri relax a little bit, but not much. He reached over to touch Yuuri, but was swatted away by the panicking boy. "Yuuri, I'm here if you need me. I'm here." He sat on the chair beside the bed and put a heavy glass down. Yuuri's eyes were closed, so he had no idea what it was.

Yuuri sniffed and tried to speak. It came out as a croak and he tried again, "M-Ma..." He shook and salty tears mixed with snot as he cried and tried to speak, "M-Maccachin..?"

Celestino nodded and Yuuri felt the soft body of Maccachin being lowered into his arms. He clung to the stuffed toy as if it were his lifeline. He stayed, curled into a ball, shaking and crying with Celestino sitting near him for the next... forever, it felt like.

Finally, Yuuri's body relaxed, his grip loosening around the stuffed toy's body. Celestino saw Yuuri lift his head and he gestured to a glass of water on the side table.

Yuuri nodded and moved to sit up, still shaking from the adrenaline rush, and with a shaking hand, took the glass. He held it for a while, slowly moving it to his mouth with stiff muscles. His hand shook, making it a little difficult to drink without spilling, but he controlled his body and swallowed. The cold water felt good on his parched, hot, tight throat.

A minute or so passed of drinking and breathing. Yuuri's heart was calming, beating at an almost regular pace. Eventually, he looked at Celestino and said, "Sorry..." Looking down.

The doctor stood and sat beside the boy. "There is nothing to say sorry for, Yuuri! I came to help. This is why you're here. I'm glad you're feeling better now." The boy nodded and blinked slowly, suppressing a yawn. He was tired from panicking an crying, but it was probably only early afternoon.

"Are you hungry at all?" Celestino asked. Yuuri shook his head in response and the doctor said, "Well, you shouldn't miss lunch, so... Tell me when you _are_ hungry and I can get something." He glanced at his watch and said, "It's almost 1:30. I have something I want to show you." He stood and held a hand to Yuuri, who took it, standing on shaking legs and they walked out of the room.

* * *

 _Where's Celestino taking me?_ Yuuri wondered. They walked down the hall to an elevator and took it to the third floor. Yuuri's chest tightened, but he was holding Maccachin still, so he felt safer. The elevator opened and it seemed like they had walked into a different world.

The walls were all a light pink with soft blue light, unlike the harsh white lights of the lower hospital. The floors had a pretty white ceramic pattern, unlike the plain black flooring he was used to. It was a nice change and it lifted Yuuri's mood. A faint smile even dusted his face. Celestino lead him to a room at the end of the hall, _Community Room_ , it read. They entered, Yuuri hiding a little bit behind his doctor.

The room was like the hallway. It was light pink with a light green blackboard at the front. A few beanbag chairs sat in the room, along with some hard chairs. The most important part of the room were the people. There were seven other people in the room.

A young adult stood with a young boy, the youngest of the group, who sat in a wheelchair. The other five were sitting on the beanbag chairs with each other. There was a dark skinned boy, about Yuuri's age, who sat on the floor, looking very interested by the tallest, oldest looking teen in the room. He had short, black hair that was gelled up a little. He was talking, waving his hands around and smiling brightly. Standing next to him, smiling and listening, was an older teen, maybe seventeen, with dirty blond hair. He was shifting in place and biting his cheek. The two who were sitting on the beanbag chairs were quieter. There was a young teen with blond hair and a streak of red in the middle. He was fiddling with his hands and quietly talking to the last person in the room. He had short black hair and was looking at his lap.

When Yuuri entered the room, the young adult saw and walked over. His short sliver hair bounced and his blue eyes sparkled. "Hello!" He greeted Yuuri. Celestino introduced him. "It's nice to meet you, Yuuri. I'm Victor Nikiforov. I run this support group." He held out his hand and Yuuri took it gently.

"N-Nice to meet you, too." That was all he could say. He was mystified by the man.

"Is this your first support group session?" The man asked. Yuuri nodded. "That's fine. Welcome! You can meet everyone here. I have some paperwork for Celestino. You can go say hi, Yuuri." He pulled out a package and went with the doctor to Victor's desk to work on those.

Yuuri walked into the middle of the room. It didn't look like the young blond boy in the wheelchair wanted to speak with anyone right now, so Yuuri went to the group.

The leader, as it seemed, the older dark-haired boy, looked as Yuuri approached and walked over, "Hey!" He beamed and took the boy's hand. "I'm Jean-Jacques. You can call me JJ!" He did a little thing with his hands, making two "j"s. He pointed at the dark-skinned boy, "This is Phichit," The blond, "This is Chris," the red streak, "This is Minami," and the last one, "And Otabek!"

Phichit stood and smiled at Yuuri, "HI."

Otabek only nodded and Minami shot a smile. While giving a smile back, Yuuri was hugged from behind. It was Chris.

"Hello, I'm Christophe. Or Chris. You are?" The group looked at him.

"I-I'm Yuuri." He said. Out of the corner of his eye, Yuuri saw that the boy in the wheelchair had turned and was watching them. It looked like he was almost glaring.

JJ laughed loudly, "Really? Guys, we have two Yuris!" He said, "The kid in the wheelchair is also named Yuri. I guess we can call him..." He thought for a moment, "Yurio!"

The blond boy moved the wheelchair quickly over to JJ and said, "That's not my name!" and threw a punch at JJ. "Don't call me that!"

 _Wow,_ Yuuri thought, _This group is... something._


	2. First Session

Yuuri sat in a circle of beanbag chairs, sinking into a blue one beside Phichit and JJ. Victor had a rocking chair at the head of the circle with Yuri... Yurio? Yurio. With Yurio and Otabek beside him.

Victor cleared his throat, "Welcome, everyone. For most of you, this isn't new, but there are some new faces. We have Yuri Plisetsky, Jean-Jacques Leroy and Yuuri Katsuki joining us for their first sessions. Let's welcome them and, if you could introduce yourselves? We'll go from here and on," He gestured to Yurio beside him.

The blond in the wheelchair, Yurio, sighed, "I'm Yuri Plisetsky, I"m from Russia but came here because it was recommended."

"Do you mind telling us why you're here?" Victor asked.

He seemed to almost growl at the doctor. "I have anger problems, I guess." Victor nodded and started clapping to welcome the young boy, motioning the others to join him. Yurio's hands stayed on the armrests of his chair and glared at JJ, who muttered "Yurio" to Chris.

"I'm Christophe Giacometti, most just call me Chris." He said, his face nervous telling Victor to move on. The man nodded and they went to the older teen beside Yuuri.

"My name's JJ, like Victor said, I'm new and I have..." He paused and looked at Victor. The doctor smiled and urged the boy on. "I'm Narcissistic. Because that's a problem, apparently" Victor rolled his eyes and nodded to... Yuuri.

It was Yuuri's turn. The idea of introducing himself seemed, harmless, but it still made is heart pound. He felt seven eyes on him, which made him swallow uncomfortably. Finally, after a moment, he said, "I-I'm Yuuri Katsuki. I don't live too far from here and- and I have anxiety, or, more specifically, panic disorder." He felt proud that he hadn't stuttered much. It was a problem for him in large groups.

Another round of applause pushed a small smile onto Yuuri's face. "That was great, Yuuri," Victor said. It made his heart flutter, but he knew it was just because he did well keeping himself together. Celestino must have told Victor about his frequent panic attacks. Still, the smile that rested on Victor's face made Yuuri feel lighter, calmer.

A small squeak sounded from the boy's other side. Phichit sat up and said, "My name's Phichit Chulanont!" He smiled. "I have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD." Victor nodded and went to the next person.

"Hello, I'm Minami Kenjirou." He said, looking up from his Rubix Cude he was playing with. "I have OCD and tend to get obsessed with new things and people that are interesting and inspirational to me." he gave a little smile to Victor when he finished and the man smiled back.

It came to Otabek, who was looking down at his hands until Victor tapped his shoulder lightly. Otabek looked up and nodded. He held up his hands and moved them in the air, making signs and spellings which made sense to Victor, but clearly confused the rest of them. Only a minute of that happened until the boy looked down again and lowered his hands, a sad look on his face. Victor took a deep breath and put his hand on the others shoulder, "Otabek Altin here is selectively mute. He can hear and speak, but he doesn't speak. As you can see, he knows ASL and Russian Sign Language. He is from Kazakhstan and said that he wants to try to make a friend with... Yuri, it seems. He spelled your name as best he could."

Yurio looked up from the tablet he was reading on and said, "Wait, me?" When Victor nodded, he shrugged, "Sure, why not?" And flashed a small smile at Otabek.

"That's great to hear, Yuri, and of course, I'm Victor Nikiforov," He said, introducing himself for the new members to the group. "I come from Saint Petersburg, Russia and have worked here for four years. I'm a doctor who treats OCD, anxiety and depression, but will help with anyone in need. I'm always here to help. If anyone needs anything, know you can knock at the office or call for me at anytime." He punctuated his sentence with a happy smile.

"It seems we have people with all kinds of backgrounds here," The young adult continued, "So we can take today to get to know each other. We can mingle and play games. The whole room's open for anyone to do as they please, but be kind to the others. I'm here in case you need anything. A friend, a doctor or someone to play with." He gestured for them to disperse and JJ went with Chris to the whiteboard on the far wall to draw something, Phichit joining them with a skip in his step.

Otabek went to sit quietly beside Yurio. They didn't speak at first but then Yurio said, "Do you like video games?" Otabek nodded and they went to the television to start up Mario Kart 64.

Minami was absorbed in his Rubix Cube once more, which left Yuuri, still sitting as he was, awkwardly, and Victor, who had been checking his phone, but was looking at Yuuri when he looked up. Yuuri swallowed hard and waited for Victor to speak, tapping his feet anxiously.

Victor saw the anxious glint in Yuuri's eyes and moved over to sit with him. "Are you alright, Yuuri?"

The boy looked up at the doctor's clear blue eyes, "Yeah, just kind of lost."

"Oh, well, Dr. Celestino told me you like dogs, is that right?" The young adult said, trying to make conversation.

Yuuri nodded, "Yeah, there's this stuffed toy I have, Maccachin." Yuuri found it surprisingly easy to talk to him, probably because the other worked with young adults and children, so he knew how to hold himself and seem approachable.

"You know, Yuuri, the hospital works with a company who breeds and trains therapy dogs." That made the boy interested. What if he could have a there with him dog? And one to help with his anxiety? His mom would never object to that! "It will take time and a lot of work, but it can be done. After today's session I can talk to Dr. Celestino about finding you one, if you want."

"I would love that!" Yuuri's face lit up and he wanted to hug the young doctor, but he didn't, worried it would be rude or strange or sudden or... "Thank you," He said instead.

Victor smiled brightly, "Of course, no problem-" He stopped when he heard a crash and he turned, his head and Yuuri's jerking around where Yurio was with Otabek at the television. The young boy had tossed the controller to the ground, most likely in a fit of anger. His mid-length hair was ruffled and his face was red. JJ and Chris were over standing with them and it looked like the controller had been thrown at the oldest patient, JJ, from where it landed.

"You asshole!" Yurio shouted and he straightened himself as tall as he could in his wheelchair as he glared at the other. Victor got up and hurried over to them. "How dare you?"

"What's wrong?" Victor asked, worry lacing his voice as he put himself between the arguing pair.

JJ sat back on his heels and said, "I was just making conversation with this little guy and he just threw that at me." As the supposed 'victim', JJ was being strangely calm.

"Yeah, conversation," Yurio scoffed. Chris was behind JJ, a hand on his shoulder and a worried expression and Otabek looked at Yurio, concern and worry on his face as well with his mouth turned down into a frown. "You sauntered over and decided you could ask me what my 'problem was' because I-I..." He looked as if tears were beginning to build at his eyes.

"Now, now, Yuri, it's okay," Victor tried to calm the boy, but he grabbed his wheels and pushed them forward, the thin rubber-covered metal hitting JJ's right foot and rolling over his toes.

"Ow! Shit, man! What the hell?" He backed up and fell onto his bum, holding his foot.

"He tried to pry into my personal life. He asked me why I was in my wheelchair and his tone sounded like he was disgusted. Disgusted!" Yurio's voice cracked and he swallowed hard, closing his mouth and wiping his face a little.

The doctor turned to the injured JJ and said, "Is this true?"

"Well, yeah, I guess. I didn't think it would be that big of a deal. I mean, he's here and all so it can't be that bad. I thought it was just a harmless question. I shared a lot in my introduction but he barely said what was wrong with him, but I sure see what he meant by anger issues now!"

"Fuck you, asshole!" Was what Yurio said in return after hearing JJ's reasoning.

"Yuri, language," Victor reminded and just got a scoff and the boy turned his wheelchair away, muttering profanities under his breath. It surprised Yuuri how the youngest boy, probably only fourteen or fifteen could be so foul mouthed. He took a deep breath, trying to shake the feeling of panic that had started creeping into him over the fight that had just occurred.

The young adult turned back to JJ and knelt down, "I'm sorry about your foot, we can get some ice for that, but it wasn't right what you did. As you saw, it really angered Yuri and it clearly hurt him to be asked about his situation. Not everyone here is here for a nice reason and Yuri is no exception. I hope you don't do this again, okay JJ?"

"Yeah, okay," He said, looking at the floor, still holding his foot. "I didn't mean to upset him, I was just curious."

"I know," Victor sighed again and turned so he was addressing the whole group. "This is a place of welcome and comfort. All of you should feel safe here and it's my job to make sure of it. I know we can't all get along, but can we try?" He looked at each of the patients, getting either a nod or a smile from each of them. Yurio was still in the far side of the room, shaking in his wheelchair, head down. Victor swallowed hard and went over to see the young boy.

Yuuri was quite shaken by his first time at the support group, but hopefully from the short lecture from Victor, things would hopefully calm down for a bit. He took some deep breaths and noticed that Otabek was watching the two over on the other side of the room. His face was shadowed from worry and he bit at his lip. Did he feel any guilt for what happened? He shouldn't. There was no way to find out, Yuuri not knowing sign language.

Chris was sitting by JJ, holding an ice pack to his ankle. JJ was saying under his breath, "That Yurio's a rude one." And he saw Chris almost nod slowly.

* * *

The rest of the session went by quietly. Minami was helping Phichit figure out how to use a Rubix Cube, without success, and JJ read in one corner with Chris sitting with him, playing a plat former on a tablet. Yuri hadn't moved from his other side of the room, but Otabek had joined him, just sitting quietly a few feet away, both deep in thought. Yuuri could have sworn Yurio was even asleep. Yuuri himself was playing cards with Victor, War, when the door opened and Yuuri's doctor, Celestino, walked into the quiet room.

"Hello, Yuuri, how was it?" He asked, making his way to where his patient and the other doctor were sitting. He chuckled when he saw the boy's head snap up, "Sorry, did I startle you?"

Yuuri nodded slowly and took a deep breath, gathering up his cards, "It was fun, I guess."

He gave a half smile and then a larger one to Victor, who said, "It was nice having Yuuri here. We had a little bump in the road, but other than that it was great. Will you be joining us again?" He ran a hand through his long silver bangs and smiled to the teen.

"Yeah, I think I will," Yuuri said. The day had started roughly with his panic attack, but he liked the group, but most of all, he wanted to see Victor Nikiforov again.


	3. Meeting Family

Taking the elevator back with Celestino was fairly quiet for Yuuri. They took it down three floors, to the main floor where Yuuri's room was. The adult made some small talk on the way back, asking questions about the day and he seemed very interested.

Celestino's first question was about the other people who were there. "Well, there were a few others," Yuuri said, "Seven, including Victor, but excluding myself. There was JJ, Chris, Phichit, Otabek, this kid Minami and Yurio." He went through their names and then started describing them when he thought of how Yurio looked like he was crying before, after the fight with JJ.

"So did you make any friends, Yuuri?" Celestino inquired after hearing about them all.

He stopped walking down the hall to think. He didn't think he had. There was Victor, who he'd talked with and played cards with, but Yuuri didn't talk with any others, did he? No, he hadn't. He didn't want to get into any unwanted situations, like fights or embarrassing himself, so he kept to himself. Taking the time for a sigh, he shook his head to answer the doctor's question.

"That's too bad," The Italian man said, not saying anything until they got to the boy's room. Finally, when they were sitting, Yuuri on his bed and Celestino at the chair beside it, he said, "You should try."

"Pardon?" Yuuri said, looking up from his hands.

A chuckle escaped Celestino and he said, "You should try making a friend or two. It can be lonely here without anyone to help take the pain of being away from home away and you might enjoy it." He shrugged. "You've got the group to socialize, but it could be nice to have a friend for other days. The group is only four times a week and I know you like reading, but you might like it."

"I get it, yeah. I can try." Yuuri said with a shrug of his own. The idea of making friends wasn't too bad, he just was worried he would make a fool of himself somehow.

Worries kept him away from most things he could do there. The boy liked to have meals in his room, where he felt safe, rather than going to the dining hall. He didn't go and play much because he was worried or scared of the worst. Going out of his comfort zone would be good for his anxiety, he knew that, but part of him still argued against it and said he still shouldn't.

Holding onto Makkachin, he took a deep breath and said, "Hey, Celestino?"

"Yes?"

Moving in his seat he squeezed his eyes shut only to open them with a strong, determined look in them, "Can you show me where the dining hall is for dinner tonight?"

That made Celestino happy as he beamed back and replied, "I would love to, Yuuri. I'm glad you're taking this step, I was worried you'd stay in your room forever," He joked and tried a playful wink. The boy knew he should laugh, and he returned the smile and forced a chuckle.

* * *

That evening came quickly because it was already past three p.m when he had returned from the group. It was dinnertime and Yuuri played with his hair as he put Makkachin down on his bed, saying, "I can't believe I'm doing this," to no one in particular. He was in his room alone with Celestino drawing a small map and a list of instructions for Yuuri in his office, as the boy had asked for.

The door opened and the doctor smiled to Yuuri, the boy joining him in the hall, "So, I've drawn the map and the list you asked for," He said with a chuckle. "I'll walk you there and I added my extension to ask for if anything happens, but I'd like you to have supper without me."

There was suddenly a lump in Yuuri's throat the was hard to swallow. He said, with a small stutter, "So, i-it'll be just me?"

"You and anyone you may know, or make friends with," The doctor said, his smile staying, telling Yuuri to give it a try.

"Yeah, o-okay," He took a deep breath and the two of them headed in the direction of the dining hall. The white hallway opened into a large room that was lit with bright blue lights and the sterile smell disappeared and Yuuri could smell all kinds of strong smelling foods. There was meat, bread, cheese. It smelled amazing.

Walking into the dining hall, he felt Celestino put his hand on his shoulder, "Can I leave you here, Yuuri? You don't need to pay for food, that's all okay. Do your best." He gave a smile and turned. Yuuri watched him leave and felt his stomach flip-flop.

Looking around at the room that surrounded him, the boy swallowed hard and took a step forwards, into the dining hall. It wasn't meant to be scary, but now he was alone, in a strange place. His hunger kept him moving steadily, despite his fear. There were patients in white and a few doctors in green scrubs that Yuuri made his way around. On the far side of the hall, he got to a counter where there was an old, kind looking doctor standing, preparing buns and soup.

The old man saw Yuuri and his face brightened, "Hello, I haven't seen you before. Welcome." It seemed like the man was very nice. "I'm Mr. Nikolai Plisetsky, the cook here and a friend to all. Now, my boy, what would you like?" He gestured behind him to the large menu written on a chalkboard.

Yuuri looked up at the board and saw the many food items available. There was quite a selection for the only viable cook being Nikolai Plisetsky. His eyes landed on the ramen bowls, "I'd l-like one ramen bowl p-please."

"Coming right up, my boy," the old man went to the back, out of view, leaving Yuuri standing, waiting for him to emerge again.

It was quiet and he was starting to get antsy until he heard from the front of the room, "Man, I'm hungry!" He turned and saw that there was a group of patients entering the hall. It was Phichit, Yurio an Otabek. Yurio was talking to his friend quietly, the silent boy nodding in response.

Phichit saw Yuuri and hurried over, seeing there wasn't s line as well, "Hey, Yuuri, right? Nice to see you again!" He said loudly. The boy seemed like he was full of unrelenting energy. as he got over to him.

"Yeah, it's nice to see you too," Yuuri said quieter. Phichit waited in the line behind Yuuri while he looked at Yurio with Otabek. The two of them were making their way form the entrance more slowly, keeping up with the pace of the younger one's wheelchair.

"Yeah, so my grandpa's actually here, he's the chef," He heard Yurio explain to his friend.

Yuuri's interest peaked as he heard what the young boy had said. Once the two friends made their way over to the line, Yuuri said, "Your grandpa's here?"

A small scowl drifted onto Yurio's face, "Yeah, he is." Just then, his face brightened and for the first time, a large smile was on Yurio's face. "Grandpa!" The pure joy in the young boy's voice was sweet and contradicted his normal tone. Turning, Yuuri saw that the old man had emerged from the kitchen with a bowl of ramen on a tray. It smelled like heaven, the salty broth fighting with sweet pork and eggs made Yuuri's mouth water.

"Yurachika!" Nikolai Plisetsky put the ramen down and moved from behind the counter to join the group of teenagers, a huge smile on his face. His movements were slow but when he got to his grandson he bent down and picked him up into a hug. Yurio wrapped his arms around the old man's shoulders and his legs dangled under him, limp.

"Grandpa, how are you?" He pushed his face into Nikolai Plisetsky's shoulder.

Nikolai put an arm under his grandson's legs to keep him from falling. Yuuri's face dusted with a blush when he noticed he had been staring at Yurio's legs, how they had been dangling below him. They looked like they were dead. That made sense of the wheelchair.

The old man hugged the young boy close to him. "I'm as well as an old man like me can be," he said with a chuckle.

The words had a bit of strain in them and Yurio looked over from his hug, "You can put me down, Grandpa. I don't want you to hurt your back more." By the looks of the faces on the others' faces, Yuuri knew that none of them had heard Yurio speak with such a gentle, caring voice.

The old man nodded and set his grandson back in his wheelchair. Yurio adjusted himself in the seat and let out a content sounding sigh. A small smile rested on his face as he watched his grandfather bring a small plate with hot, light brown buns on them. He put them on Yurio's lap. "You'll see I used a different the piroshki recipe today, Yurachika."

The young teenager picked one up and took a bite. His face scrunched up and then relaxed as he let out a long sigh. Yuuri saw something yellow and some white poking out from the half eaten piroshki. "It's amazing, Grandpa!" Yurio exclaimed, hugging his torso as well as he could with his limited reach.

"W-What's in it?" Yuuri asked, his face blushing from the stutter. Yurio's face almost twisted into a scowl when he heard the other patient speak but he couldn't get himself to because he was so happy to be with his grandfather.

"Well, there's rice, egg and some pork in the center. Yurio hadn't been getting enough of his food groups and I know he likes piroshki, so I'm making him different meals in the buns," Nikolai explained. Otabek had moved beside Yurio and the young boy was passing one of them to his friend for a taste. His friend's face seemed to light up when he tasted the food and gave the old man a thumbs up. "Thank you," the man responded to the complement.

Phichit looked at them from the blackboard and spoke up for the first time in the conversation, "Sir, can I have a hamburger steak?"

The corners of Nikolai's eyes scrunched up with the smile he had and made his way back behind the counter. "Of course," he said. "You guys can have a seat, I'll bring your food to you when it's ready." He looked at Otabek, "What would you like, son?"

Otabek shrugged and looked down. This made the youngest boy flash him a smile and told him to just point to what he wanted. The dark haired teenager nodded and looked up at the sign, his face unreadable. After a moment of strange silence as they waited fro Otabek to make his choice, the teen pointed at the menu to a picture of piroshki like Yurio was eating.

"Well, son, would you like me to make it like Yurachika's?" Nikolai offered, earning a nod in return. "Of course, son. I'll be right back with that." The old man chuckled a little bit and went back behind the counter into the kitchen.


End file.
